Round About the Carpathians

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Round About the Carpathians

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Title: Round About the Carpathians
Author: Andrew F. Crosse
Release Date: March 12, 2006 [EBook #17972]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
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ROUND ABOUT THE CARPATHIANS
BY
ANDREW F. CROSSE
FELLOW OF THE CHEMICAL SOCIETY
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS EDINBURGH AND LONDON MDCCCLXXVIII
The Right of translation is reserved
MUIR AND PATERSON, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH.

CONTENTS.
PAGE
CHAPTER I.
Down the Danube from Buda-Pest--Amusements on board the steamer--Basiash--Drive to Oravicza by Weisskirchen--Ladies of Oravicza--Gipsy music--Finding an old school-fellow--The czardas. 1
CHAPTER II.
Consequences of trying to buy a horse--An expedition into Servia--Fine scenery--The peasants of New Moldova--Szechenyi road--Geology of the defile of Kasan--Crossing the Danube--Milanovacz--Drive to Maidenpek--Fearful storm in the mountains--Miserable quarters for the night--Extent of this storm--The disastrous effects of the same storm at Buda-Pest--Great loss of life. 15
CHAPTER III.
Maidenpek--Well-to-do condition of Servians--Lady Mary Wortley Montague's journey through Servia--Troubles in Bulgaria--Communists at Negotin--Copper mines--Forest ride--Robbers on the road--Kucainia--Belo-breska--Across the Danube--Detention at customhouse--Weisskirchen--Sleeping Wallacks. 33
CHAPTER IV.
Variety of races in Hungary--Wallacks or Roumains--Statistics--Savage outbreak of the Wallacks in former years--Panslavic ideas--Roumanians and their origin--Priests of the Greek Church--Destruction of forests--Spirit of Communism--Incendiary fires. 46
CHAPTER V.
Paraffine-works in Oravicza--Gold mine--Coal mines at Auima-Steirdorf--Geology--States Railway Company's mines--Bribery 54
CHAPTER VI.
Mineral wealth of the Banat--Wild ride to Dognacska--Equipment for a riding tour--An afternoon nap and its consequences--Copper mines--Self-help--Rare insects--Moravicza--Rare minerals--Deutsch Bogsan--Reschitza 58
CHAPTER VII.
Election at Oravicza--Officialism--Reforms--Society--Ride to Szaszka--Fine views--Drenkova--Character of the Serbs--Svenica--Rough night walk through the forest 70
CHAPTER VIII.
Hospitable welcome at Uibanya--Excursion to the Servian side of the Danube--Ascent of the Stierberg--Bivouac in the woods--Magnificent views towards the Balkans--Fourteen eagles disturbed--Wallack dance 83
CHAPTER IX.
A hunting expedition proposed--Drive from Uibanya to Orsova--Oriental aspect of the market-place--Cserna Valley--Hercules-Bad, Mehadia--Post-office mistakes--Drive to Karansebes--Rough customers en route--Lawlessness--Fair at Karansebes--Podolian cattle--Ferocious dogs 90
CHAPTER X.
Post-office at Karansebes--Good headquarters for a sportsman--Preparations for a week in the mountains--The party starting for the hunt--Adventures by the way--Fine trees--Game--Hut in the forest--Beauty of the scenery in the Southern Carpathians 104
CHAPTER XI.
Chamois and bear hunting--First battue--Luxurious dinner 5000 feet above the sea-level--Storm in the night--Discomforts--The bear's supper--The eagle's breakfast--Second and third day's shooting--Baking a friend as a cure for fever--Striking camp--View into Roumania 118
CHAPTER XII.
Back at Mehadia--Troubles about a carriage--An unexpected night on the road--Return to Karansebes--On horseback through the Iron Gate Pass--Varhely, the ancient capital of Dacia--Roman remains--Beauty of the Hatszeg Valley 131
CHAPTER XIII.
Hungarian hospitality--Wallack laziness--Fishing--"Settled gipsies"--Anecdote--Old régime--Fire--Old Roman bath--The avifauna of Transylvania--Fly-fishing 140
CHAPTER XIV.
On horseback to Petrosèny--A new town--Valuable coal-fields--Killing fish with dynamite and poison--Singular manner of repairing roads--Hungarian patriotism--Story of Hunyadi Janos--Intrusion of the Moslems into Europe 152
CHAPTER XV.
Hunting for a guide--School statistics--Old times--Over the mountains to Herrmannstadt--Night in the open--Nearly setting the forest on fire--Orlat 160
CHAPTER XVI.
Herrmannstadt--Saxon immigrants--Museum--Places of interest in the neighbourhood--The fortress-churches--Heltau--The Rothen Thurm Pass--Turkish incursions 173
CHAPTER XVII.
Magyar intolerance of the German--Patriotic revival of the Magyar language--Ride from Herrmannstadt to Kronstadt--The village of Zeiden--Curious scene in church--Reformation in Transylvania--Political bitterness between Saxons and Magyars in 1848 184
CHAPTER XVIII.
Political difficulties--Impatient criticism of foreigners--Hungary has everything to do--Tenant-farmers wanted--Wages 195
CHAPTER XIX.
Want of progress amongst the Saxons--The Burzenland--Kronstadt--Mixed character of its inhabitants--Szeklers--General Bem's campaign 199
CHAPTER XX.
The Tom?scher Pass--Projected railway from Kronstadt to Bucharest--Visit to the cavalry barracks at Rosenau--Terzburg Pass--Dr Daubeny on the extinct volcanoes of Hungary--Professor Judd on mineral deposits 209
CHAPTER XXI.
A ride through Szeklerland--Warnings about robbers--Büksad--A look at the sulphur deposits on Mount Büdos--A lonely lake--An invitation to Tusnad 219
CHAPTER XXII.
The baths of Tusnad--The state of affairs before 1848--Inequality of taxation--Reform--The existing land laws--Communal property--Complete registration of titles to estates--Question of entail 232
CHAPTER XXIII.
Fine scenery in Szeklerland--Csik Szent Marton--Absence of inns--The Szekler's love of lawsuits--Csik Szereda--Hospitality along the road--Wallack atrocities in 1848--The Wallacks not Panslavists 243
CHAPTER XXIV.
Ride to Szent Domokos--Difficulty about quarters--Interesting host--Jewish question in Hungary--Taxation--Financial matters 252
CHAPTER XXV.
Copper mine of Balanbanya--Miners in the wine-shop--Ride to St Miklos--Visit to an Armenian family--Capture of a robber--Cold ride to the baths of Borsék 260
CHAPTER XXVI.
Moldavian frontier--T?lgyes--Excitement about robbers--Attempt at extortion--A ride over the mountains--Return to St Miklos 275
CHAPTER XXVII.
Toplicza--Armenian hospitality--A bear-hunt--A ride over to the frontier of Bukovina--Destruction of timber--Maladministration of State property--An unpleasant night on the mountain--Snowstorm 282
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Visits at Transylvanian chateaux--Society--Dogs--Amusements at Klausenburg--Magyar poets--Count Istvan Széchenyi--Baron E?tvos--'The Village Notary'--Hungarian self-criticism--Literary taste 291
CHAPTER XXIX.
A visit at Schloss B------National characteristics--Robber stories--Origin of the "poor lads"--Audacity of the robbers--Anecdote of Deák and the housebreaker--Romantic story of a robber chief 302
CHAPTER XXX.
Return to Buda-Pest--All-Souls' Day--The cemetery--Secret burial of Count Louis Batthyanyi--High rate of mortality at Buda-Pest 315
CHAPTER